We're Gonna Eat This City
The Comerica Cityfest 2007, formerly Comerica Tastefest, spanned from July 04th to July 08th in Detroit's New Center. But the best part about the Cityfest has always been the free bands brought in to perform. This year, they've got a lot of big names.
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Spoon
2007, July 04th
08:30PM
01 ??? [from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga]
02 My Mathematical Mind
03 They Never Got You
04 ??? [from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga]
05 Jonathon Fisk
06 The Delicate Place
07 Don't You Evah
08 The Beast And Dragon, Adored
09 Someone Something
10 ??? [from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga]
11 Small Stakes
12 Don't Make Me A Target
13 The Two Sides Of Monsieur Valentine
14 ??? [from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga]
15 Paper Tiger
16 The Way We Get By
17 I Summon You
18 The Fitted Shirt
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19 Encore Break
20 Everything Hits At Once
21 I Turn My Camera On
22 Me And The Bean
09:53PM
I believe that Spoon had performed the best concert of the four that I saw. Most of the songs came from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, which I was not familiar with at the time. I wish that they should have played Vittorio E. The poppy energy and the spastic yet beautifully masturbatory guitar solos certainly impressed the crowds. Wouldn't you believe they call it rock and roll?
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Thunderbirds Are Now!
2007 July 05th
09:00PM - 10:05PM
TAN! has always created the most energy in any disco punk show I've ever seen (yes, even out stretching that of LCD Soundsystem). And for the punny effect, they performed Eat This City from Justamustache! And the keyboardist has a lot of energy to display from cartwheels to rolls, jumps, and hula hoops. Best live keyboardist entertainer, ever. Also, saw Tim with his female friend.
Several odd things happened on this night too.
The keyboardist announced his departure from TAN!
TAN! was playing in a time slot that competed with Weird Al Yankovich.
The night winds tore through West Grand Boulevard, upskirting several tents.
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Yo La Tengo
2007 July 07th
08:30PM - 10:05PM
YLT is the ideal concept of an excellent independent band that doesn't get much recognition. Besides the fact that they appeared in the last episode of Gilmore Girls written by Amy Sherman-Palladino, they don't get much recognition. They jump genres from pop ballads to autumnal ballads to dream pop to alternative and through fifteen minute long psychedelic noise sunsetting jams as well as a variety of covers. YLT opened with one of their best songs, Tom Courtenay and tore through some of I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass's favorite songs like the ten minute long Pass The Hatchet..., Mr. Tough, the main set ending The Story Of Yo La Tango (no, I didn't misspell that), and a cover of The Temptations' Get Ready.
For an independent band, they have quite an unusual longevity of twenty years. Twenty more years to go to catch up to The Fall. And since their discography spans 20 years, I didn't bother taking a setlist, and I'm still waiting for the pros to report the setlist.
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Cheap Trick
2007 July 08th
06:00PM - 07:15PM
Yes, they ended the main set with Surrender. No, they didn't forget about the Dream Police. Nobody was n00b enough to bring a Guitar Hero controller with them. But finishing with Surrender on a quadruple guitar surprised me. Man, the weather on that day was sweltering as my eyes caught fire.
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This year, I learned that the most satisfying thing I can find consistently at the Cityfest is Sweet Potato Ice Cream from the Sweet Potato Factory in Detroit. Man, they need to start franchising it or something.
I hope Neelesh, Ouisi, and Emily can make it out there again next year.
And to remind Zappy, the pictures are links to the photo album.
EDIT:
Guess what happens on this stage on Saturday at 20:00?